


The Coldest Season | A Wonty Christmas Short Story

by foreverwonty



Category: 13 Reasons Why (TV)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-25
Updated: 2020-12-25
Packaged: 2021-03-10 20:34:42
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,786
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28313151
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/foreverwonty/pseuds/foreverwonty
Summary: Monty and Winston met and fell in love back home in California. They had to face serious obstacles there, but not even Monty’s violent and homophobic father could keep them apart. They left their hometown and their families behind to start their new lives in the college town of Ann Arbor, where they go to The University of Michigan.After Monty came out to everyone at high school prom, they thought they were done hiding their relationship. But there is prejudice and bigotry everywhere, and just when Monty thought he had it all, everything got extremely complicated. Is their relationship strong enough to survive this?—————-This short story is a continuation of my longer fanfiction “The Good Side of You” in which I tell Monty and Winston’s story from the moment they met.Follow me on Instagram & Wattpad: @foreverwonty
Relationships: Montgomery de la Cruz/Winston Williams
Comments: 9
Kudos: 34





	1. OCTOBER

DISCLAIMER: The story, all names, characters, and incidents portrayed in this fanfiction are fictitious. This story takes place mainly in the campus of the University of Michigan, including Michigan Stadium and Schembechler Hall, but all the characters that are not from 13 Reasons Why, including the head coach and Monty's team members, are made up by me. They in no way reflect the behavior of the real Wolverines head coach, or of the athletes themselves.

TRIGGER WARNING: Homophobia.

**Monty**

"It's amazing how much you suck at this," Monty said, a Bruen MK9 thundering with every push of a button. It was 1:00AM and he was playing Call of Duty with Winston.

"Remind me, who was it that died the minute his parachute landed when we were playing PUBG? And who ended up in the top 8 out of 99 players?" Winston retorted. "After you lose at this too, you can watch me play Animal Crossing."

"Nope," Monty said, amused. He couldn't believe how good his life was at the moment. Living with Winston in Ann Arbor was everything he thought it would be and more. They had already finished furnishing their apartment, and the place looked exactly how they had envisioned it: huge TV in their room where they played video games and watched Netflix, a king-size bed (unnecessarily large considering Monty liked to cuddle, even if he wouldn't admit it out loud), a smaller TV for the living room which they only used when they invited friends over, and a fully stocked kitchen. Neither of them knew how to cook, but they were giving it a try. After all, college was supposed to be all about learning how to be on your own. Winston had wanted to pay for all their things, but Monty refused to move in without contributing anything, so he got a summer job and was able to cover at least a third of the furniture expenses. 

They played one more game and then Monty turned off the PlayStation. In a few hours they would need to get up, and Monty had a pretty busy day ahead.

"Wanna come to my practice tomorrow?" Monty asked as he put an arm around Winston and pulled him close. He buried his face in Winston's curls, inhaling the familiar scent. "You have only been to a couple of them since the season started. I'm beginning to feel neglected."

"It's not my fault that they conflict with the photography club meetings," Winston said, looking up to Monty's face and running a finger lovingly down the freckled nose. "We can get there early and you can introduce me properly to the guys, if you want." 

"Mmm, okay," Monty said, resignedly. He was a bit ashamed to admit that he wanted Winston to watch him on the field. They were on a winning streak ever since the season started, and the coach was really impressed with him. 

With the TV turned off they were left in darkness, and it wasn't long before they both fell asleep. 

Classes had started a little more than a month ago, and Monty was doing his best to get used to his life as a college student. He had football practice in the afternoons with a very demanding head coach, and he had strength and conditioning training every morning from Monday to Friday. He was still getting used to the fact that his team, the Michigan Wolverines, were a very big deal. In their season opener against Iowa, there were more than 100,000 people packed inside Michigan Stadium to watch them play. They won 10-3. There was even press coverage (his coach gave an interview to ESPN). He wasn't in the small town of Evergreen anymore, and there were times when he just couldn't keep the stress at bay. He took his practice very seriously and was giving it his all, not only because he didn't want to look like a fool in front of so many people, but also because his scholarship and his place at the university depended on it. 

But the best part about his new life in Ann Arbor was getting to come home every day to Winston. They often tried to cook in the evenings but if they messed up, they usually just went out to eat. Ann Arbor was full of restaurants and bars and coffee shops and bookshops and everything in between. Truth be told, as much as they liked their apartment, it was hard to stay in, when the town was so lively. They were going out a lot during the evenings and weekends, and even with the stress of his classes and his football practices, which could be considerable, Monty hadn't felt more happy in his life. 

The alarm on his phone went off all too soon. Winston made the most adorable sound in protest, and Monty kissed his forehead before he turned the alarm off. It was 7:00AM and he had to go get ready for his strength and conditioning training before study hall at 10:00AM. Winston could still sleep for another hour and a half. 

Tiptoeing around the room to not disturb Winston, Monty quietly brushed his teeth, gathered his things, and got into his car. It was only a five minute drive from their apartment to Schembechler Hall, the football facility where Monty and his team trained, had breakfast, and practiced almost every day. A couple of his team members arrived at Schembechler at the same time as he did and parked next to him.

"Monty," Jordan Keefer greeted him, "ready for today? Coach Turner's not playing around. I bet there's gonna be tons of running."

"Yeah? Let's do it."

"Are you two princesses bitching about training this early in the morning?" Sean Meyer, another team member, said to them as he got out of his car. "God, how are you going to make it to this afternoon's practice?"

"No one's bitching, Sean, chill out," Jordan said, annoyed.

By the time he had finished his training, Monty was starving. The cafeteria was serving scrambled eggs, bacon, and pancakes, and he wasted no time in filling up his plate.

An hour later he was halfway through study hall, struggling to keep his eyes open and thinking only of the power nap he was going to take before his first class started. He pulled out his phone to give his brain a break, and texted Winston.

Monty: training + study hall got me like 😴

Winston: 😂

Winston: go home and nap!

Winston: btw, I got an A on the screenwriting project I told you about! 🤗

Monty: that's awesome

Winston was taking a lot of film and television classes. His grades were really good, and Monty, even though he was happy for Winston, couldn't help but feel a bit bad about his own performance. Monty knew he shouldn't feel like that, but sometimes he found himself deliberately avoiding that topic of conversation, and not sharing his own grades with Winston. Sometimes he just felt too drained to do his homework or to study properly. It was probably just a time management problem. He was still unsure if he wanted his major to be Applied Exercise Science or Sports Management, or a combination of both, but he was definitely struggling with his finance and business classes. It was wrong of him, but whenever Winston talked about his grades, it just increased his feelings of inadequacy. He tried not to think about it, but sometimes he felt he wasn't good enough to be there. He knew it was silly to feel like that just because of a couple of classes, but he couldn't help it. His father used to say he was a "good-for-nothing", and if it wasn't for football, Monty would have thought he was right.

Monty: we're still meeting at 4:30 in the Schembechler parking lot, right?

Winston: let's do 4

Monty: oh, right, the photography club meeting is at 4:30

Winston: yeah, but I still wanna meet your friends 😊

Winston: we still haven't been properly introduced

Winston: you said they get to practice early, right?

Monty: yeah

Monty: ok, study hall is over, I'm driving home to nap

Monty: see you at 4 🙂

When Monty and Winston arrived at Schembechler Hall at 4:00 PM, the only one there was Jordan Keefer, getting taped before practice. Jordan was a nice guy. He was also on a football scholarship, and he was the first friend Monty made on the team. Monty introduced Winston as his boyfriend, and even though he hadn't explicitly told anyone on the team that he was gay, Jordan didn't bat an eye as he streched his hand to Winston, smiling and saying, "Nice to meet you."

In the next ten minutes, most of the team began to arrive. Monty introduced Winston to some of them, the ones he liked the most, but that didn't prevent others from overhearing. Sean Meyer, a few feet away from them, looked shocked when he heard Monty say Winston was his boyfriend. "I had no idea this guy was a faggot," Monty heard him saying to another player. "Is that even allowed? Can you be a faggot and play D1 football?" It took a lot of self restraint for Monty not to punch him right then and there. Coach Turner, the team's head coach, and Coach Owens, the quarterbacks coach, had both just arrived, and the last thing Monty wanted to do was ruin their opinion of him by starting a fight. 

"I have to go," Winston said to him at about 4:20PM. "Don't let that guy get to you, just ignore him." Winston gave Monty a quick and discreet kiss on the cheek before starting to walk away.

Monty grabbed one of his arms and pulled him back towards him. He took Winston's face in his hands and kissed him hard on the lips. When Monty pulled away, Winston grinned and said, "I'll see you later." They both had been through a lot already, and Monty wasn't going to let someone like Sean prevent him from being himself around Winston.

Football practice usually lasted about an hour and a half, but Coach Turner worked them especially hard that day. Two hours and fifteen minutes after he had said goodbye to Winston, Monty collapsed on the field, completely exhausted. Their next game was against Penn State, and it was only five days away. The team was feeling confident. They had won every game since the season started, and morale was high. Coach Turner noticed, and gave them all a speech after practice on how now was not the time to let their guard down. When Coach Turner dismissed the team for the day, he pulled Monty aside.

"Monty, can I speak with you for a moment?"

"Sure, coach. What's up?"

Coach Turner looked uncomfortable, but he seemed determined to speak. Coach Owens had already left. It was just the two of them. 

"This is about the guy that was with you earlier, before practice started. I saw you introducing him to some of the boys today, and I've seen you with him before. He doesn't come to practice often but he never misses a game. I knew something might be going on, son, but I thought you had the good sense of keeping it on the down low, as they say." 

Monty stared at his head coach, unbelieving. "What are you saying?"

"Come on, Montgomery. I'm sure you know there are very few openly gay Division I athletes. You know why that is? It's because no coach wants to have a gay player on their team. Team image and reputation are very important, and I expect you to show this team the respect it deserves. Don't forget this sport is paying for your education."

Monty was speechless. He couldn't believe this was happening. Not here. After everything he went through with his dad, he thought he was done hiding, he thought he was done being afraid. 

"I'm not saying you should stop seeing this guy or anything. Just keep it on the down low, you know. Don't Ask, Don't Tell. There's no need to flaunt your untraditional lifestyle. I'm saying this for your own good, son. You show a lot of promise. I'd hate to see your college career ruined by something like this. Just do what's right, and you'll stick around."

Coach Turner put a hand on Monty's shoulder and squeezed it, then left a stunned Monty standing alone on the field. 

**Winston**

Winston knew something was wrong the moment Monty got home, but Monty kept saying everything was fine, that he was just stressed out with the next game being so close. Winston didn't really believe him, but he decided to drop it for the time being. If Monty didn't want to talk about whatever it was that was bothering him, then Winston would find other ways of making him feel better. 

"Come here," Winston said to him, and Monty dropped on the sofa next to him, laying down his head on Winston's lap. Monty closed his eyes when Winston started running his fingers through his hair. "Are you hungry? Wanna go to Frita Batidos later?" Frita Batidos was a Cuban restaurant on Washington Street that served colorful cuban street food and tropical cocktails. Monty loved their Cuban sandwiches, and it was just a 3 minute walk from their apartment in Liberty Street. 

Monty nodded, and ten minutes later they were making their way there, walking beside old brick buildings, orange and yellow leaves falling gracefully from the tall trees above their heads. Being out in the cool autumn air with Winston seemed to have done Monty good, and by the time they made their way back with their stomachs full, Monty was smiling and joking around. 

But Monty didn't invite Winston to his football practice the next day, or the day after that. Winston had the photography club meetings to go to, but he found it odd that Monty had stopped asking him to go watch him practice. They didn't meet as frequently as they used to at campus, either. Monty seemed to always be busy, and they didn't really see each other during the day, not until they got back home in the evenings. 

Saturday arrived fast, and Winston could tell that Monty was more nervous than usual before his game against Penn State. This one wasn't at Michigan Stadium, but at Beaver Stadium in Pennsylvania. Winston tried to take some of Monty's nervousness away by joking around to lighten the mood, but Monty seemed distant, less inclined to kiss him or hug him in public. More than 110,000 people were there to watch, and after three and a half hours of playing what ended up being a frustratingly close game, the Michigan Wolverines, Monty's team, lost 21-28. Their first loss of the season.

Winston knew that had to have hit Monty hard, but again, Monty insisted that everything was fine. It got to the point where Winston stopped bringing up the subject of football all together because Monty would completely close up. Winston then resorted to talking about his own classes and activities, in the hopes that Monty would open up to him when he was ready. 

Unbelievable as it was, Winston was actually enjoying being a student for once. He was majoring in Film, Television, and Media, and all the classes he had taken so far had stimulated his creativity and strengthened his conviction that he was in the right place. He was glad he had been caught in his SAT lie and had never gone to Princeton or followed in his father's footsteps, otherwise he would have taken lots of math and business classes, which would have made him completely miserable. He also discovered that he loved writing screenplays, and was looking forward to declaring screenwriting as his sub major. Every good grade he got made him happy, and naturally he always wanted to share the good news with Monty.

"Look at the comments my professor made to the first draft I submitted last week," Winston said to Monty one evening when they were sitting together on the sofa. Monty was looking intently at his phone screen, reading an article online about his game against Penn State, and Winston was sitting cross-legged with his laptop on his lap. A warm blanket was thrown over their legs. Two cups of hot chocolate, made by Winston, were sitting on the coffee table in front of them. 

Monty looked at Winston's laptop screen for a second and said, "That's great." The flat tone of his voice must have elicited some change in Winston's expression because Monty kissed him on the cheek and sounded a bit more enthusiastic when he said, "I'm glad you are doing so well."

Winston gave him a small smile but remained quiet. He didn't know what was wrong with Monty. He desperately wanted to fix things, but he didn't know how. He looked at his laptop screen again, wanting to distract himself before he started crying. Then, suddenly, Monty's arms were around him. He gave a yelp of surprise when he felt himself being picked up and swung over Monty's shoulder, so that his head was upside down. By some miracle, his laptop got caught in the thick blanket and didn't fall to the floor. Monty grabbed Winston's waist tightly and spun him around the living room. 

"Monty, stop!" Winston had a huge smile on his face, but he was also a tiny bit scared that Monty would drop him accidentally. He needn't have worried. Monty carried him over to their room and gently laid him on the bed, pressing his body against Winston's as he locked their lips together. 

"You know I love you, right?" Monty whispered between kisses. 

"Yes," Winston sighed against Monty's lips.

Monty seemed to be in a better mood the next day. It was finally Friday, and after a long week of classes and, in Monty's case, workouts and football practices, Winston felt they deserved a little fun. At about 9:00 PM that night, they got dressed up and went out to their favorite nightclub. 

Necto Nightclub was just an eight minute walk from their apartment. It was a high energy dance club that frequently offered fun theme nights. They could have taken the car, but considering they planned to get wasted, walking seemed like a better idea. It was cold outside, and Winston kept rubbing his hands together in an attempt to warm them. Monty took Winston's left hand in his and interlaced their fingers. "We're almost there."

Friday nights at Necto were called PRIDE nights, and the parties were usually crazy. Entry was free if you had a college ID. As soon as Monty and Winston got through the doors, they headed to the bar to get their drinks. The bartender was a young woman dressed in an Alice in Wonderland costume. She was talking animatedly to a man dressed as the Mad Hatter. 

"I think there's a Halloween costume contest going on today," Winston said, speaking loudly so Monty could hear him over the sound of the music that thundered from the dance floor. "I wish I had known, we could have dressed up as Animal Crossing characters."

Monty snorted. "Not in a million years."

"You would have looked so cute," Winston said before taking a sip of his Long Island. 

They had a few more drinks before Monty pulled him to the dance floor. They were starting to feel that sense of carefree happiness that comes with being tipsy, and they joined the crowd of Michiganders dancing wildly that Friday night. They befriended other young drunk strangers that they would never see again, and the night passed away in a swirl of laughter, music and drinks. Monty couldn't keep his hands off him, and Winston thought to himself how maybe everything would be okay after all.


	2. NOVEMBER

**Monty**

Frosty November arrived, and Monty still hadn't found the courage to tell Winston what Coach Turner had asked of him. He couldn't put Winston through the same thing again. He didn't want to go back to hiding their relationship. But what could he do? He couldn't afford to get himself kicked off the team. That would mean having to drop out of college. It would make him a total and complete failure, and he would disappoint Winston, and Estela, and even Coach Kerba. He didn't want to let down the people who believed in him.

Unsure of what to do, Monty had spent the month before trying to distance himself from Winston at campus. He didn't dare bring Winston to football practice anymore, not wanting to upset Coach Turner any further. He just wanted to be able to play football, to be recognized by his skill as a player and not judged by his personal life. He wished he could find a way to articulate all of this in a way that Winston could understand, but he let pass away every opportunity to talk about it with him. 

Because the game against Penn State had been so close, Monty had told himself that he was just focusing all his energy on practicing hard. He told himself that he would tell Winston everything after the game, when training would be a little less crazy. 

But then the day of the game arrived. October 17th. They had left home and flown to Pensylvannia to play in front of more than 110,000 people. Winston was with him, but Monty could tell that this new coldness he was displaying in front of his coach and his teammates was hurting him. It was all he could think about during the match. Having a distracted quarterback was not good, and Monty would never forget the frustration on Coach Turner's face when Penn State took the win, or the thinly-veiled disappointment he showed during the postgame press conference, where he was forced to admit the strengths of the rival team and how they all could learn from this loss.

"Hey, Monty. You alright?" Coach Owens had asked him right after the game was over. 

"Yeah, yeah. Fine." Monty said.

"Listen, don't beat yourself up over this. It was a really close game."

Monty nodded but said nothing.

"Alright. If you ever want to talk, I'm here. Okay?"

"Okay."

No matter how nice Coach Owens had been about it, Monty knew that loss had a lot to do with him. Football was the only thing he was good at. Without it, what did he have? His performance in class was average at best, he could never be a straight A student. He loved having something that he was truly passionate about, something that made him feel good about himself. That was what football was to him. And just when he thought he had it all, everything had become so complicated. 

Monty couldn't bear to even discuss football with Winston anymore. He knew Winston could tell something was up, but his heart broke every time he thought of telling him that they had to be discreet about their relationship. Winston didn't deserve to be hidden like he was something shameful. 

They had had a nice time last month, a week after the game. They had gone to Necto Nightclub and had spent the night drinking and dancing. At that moment, he hadn't cared about what Coach Turner thought of him. Monty remembered having a strong desire to make Winston happy that night, to make everything up to him somehow. They had left the nightclub at 2:00AM, walking drunkenly to their apartment but feeling more in love than ever. 

After that game against Penn State, they had had another loss against Wisconsin, and Coach Turner's mood was worse than ever. Practices had become almost torture. 

Suddenly, the first week of November found Monty doing poorly both in class and during his football practices. A true "good-for-nothing", just like his father used to say.

Just before the Thanksgiving break, Monty got an email from his economics professor. She wanted to let him know that he wasn't doing as well as expected in her class, and that she wanted to meet with him to discuss different options that could help get him on the right track. 

"I didn't know you were struggling with that class," Winston said, startling Monty. He hadn't noticed Winston was behind him. "You should have told me, I could have helped you study."

The fact that Winston had read that email angered him more than it should have. It made him feel like Winston would think he was stupid now. "How would you have helped me? You don't know anything about economics."

"Okay," Winston said slowly. 

Monty knew he was being unfair, but he couldn't stop himself. He had too much bottled up. Logging out of his student email account, he forced himself to keep his mouth shut before he said anything he would regret. 

"I mean, I do have a study schedule that has worked pretty well for me even though I also have the photography club. I could help you prioritize your classes and find the time to study for every subject—"

"Winston, the only reason it has worked for you is because you're taking easy classes," Monty exploded, "And the photography club? Please. How does taking pictures even compare to playing football?"

Winston gaped at him. He looked hurt for a second. Then he just looked angry. "What is your problem?"

"Nothing. I just don't like having you look at me like I'm an idiot for not getting As all the time."

"I'm not!" Winston protested.

"Even if you weren't getting good grades, it's not like that would have stressed you out. You're not here on scholarship, your dad pays your tuition. You don't have to worry about money or about having to drop out."

"Is that what you're worried about? Monty, I can pay your tuition if you lose the scholarship. You don't have to worry about that!"

Instead of making him feel better, that comment made Monty feel more inferior than ever. Not only was he so poor he couldn't afford an education without a scholarship, but he also felt he was too stupid to keep said scholarship. Having Winston talk about him losing the scholarship made his fears feel more real. 

"Well, it's good to know you have so much confidence in me," Monty said.

Winston sighed. "What. Is. Your. Problem?" He asked again. "You have been distant with me for weeks and now this? Is it just because of your grades?"

Fueled by having his insecurities being discussed out loud, Monty's anger had reached irrational levels. He wasn't thinking anymore. He was now releasing feelings he had kept bottled up for almost a month, and he didn't care who he hurt, even if it was himself. 

"No, it's not just because of my mediocre grades. It's also because my head coach wants me to pretend I'm not gay or else he'll kick me off the team. It's because I can never be happy, no matter how far away from home I run." 

Winston looked stunned. "Why didn't you—I had no idea. That's awful of him."

It was Monty's turn to sigh. He rested his forehead on both of his palms, closing his eyes. "This is too difficult. I thought this nightmare would be over when we were far away from home, but it's just never ending."

He felt Winston's hand between his shoulder blades, stroking his back for a moment before coming to rest at the nape of his neck. "Monty, there's people like that everywhere, not just back home. We survived high school, we can do this, too."

But Monty was shaking his head. "We're not high school kids anymore. This is real life. I don't know if I can do this. Life's difficult enough as it is."

Rain was pouring down heavily against their windows. The trees outside the building were losing the few honey-colored leaves that still clung desperately to the branches.

Winston went to bed, and Monty slept on the sofa that night.

**Winston**

Winston was curled up under the covers, trying not to cry as the rain poured down outside. He wanted to get up and make everything okay between them. He wanted Monty sleeping next to him. But at the same time he was hurt. He couldn't believe that after everything they've been through, Monty could give up so easily. Winston knew deep down that Monty was just overwhelmed, but the way he had talked about how Winston only took easy classes had upset him. Photography was one of the things Winston most cared about, and Monty had made him feel like it was just some silly, unimportant hobby. These were the two main reasons why he didn't leave his room to try to make peace.

He fell into a troubled sleep, and by morning he felt more tired than he had been when he went to bed last night. The first thing he did was walk out to the living room, but Monty wasn't there. He found a note folded in half on top of the blanked Monty had used last night.

"I'm sorry. I've always known you deserve better than me. I understand if you want me to move out. I'll be staying at Jordan's in the meantime."

In the meantime? Winston now wished he had woken up early enough to catch him before he left. His anger had dissolved, washed away with the night and the rain. The only thing left in him was a desire to fix things. And love. Infinite and unconditional love for Monty. But what did he mean, "in the meantime"? Was he looking for his own place? That thought almost made Winston break down in tears. 

Monty stayed true to his word, and didn't come home that day. Or the next. Winston checked his phone every day, but Monty didn't call or text, either. Three days after Monty had left their apartment, Jordan Keefer called him. 

"I think he just needs a bit of time, Winston" Jordan whispered through the phone. "It's not easy, you know. Being part of a college football team like ours can mean being constantly exposed to a toxic, homophobic culture. I'm not excusing what Coach Turner did, he's an asshole, but try to put yourself in Monty's shoes. He loves you, and he doesn't want to hurt you by keeping you a secret."

"Honestly, I didn't care if we had to hide for awhile. I would have done whatever made his life easier. But I can't be there for him if he doesn't want me to."

Winston had been walking alone through Nichols Arboretum when he had gotten the call from Jordan. The trees were almost bare, but the ground was covered in the gorgeous yellow and orange tones of the fallen leaves. After he and Jordan hung up, he sat on one of the empty benches and pulled out his phone again. His fight with Monty had been full of misunderstandings and had only happened because they both had kept to themselves things that were bothering them, instead of communicating with each other. He unlocked his phone and looked for the person in his contacts that understood Monty the best, aside from himself.

"Hello?" Came Estela's familiar voice through his phone.

"Hi, Estela. How are you? Everything all right back at Evergreen?" Winston greeted her, a bit awkwardly. He loved Estela. She had been the one to help Monty see that his best friends back home would support him no matter what. She had been the reason they had had such an amazing high school prom.

"Hi! Yep, everything's good. All quiet at home. A bit boring, honestly," Estela said. "How about you guys? How is college life?"

"It's good. It's weird but I feel like I'm enjoying my classes for the first time in my life. It must be because, for once, I'm learning stuff that I'm actually interested in," Winston replied. 

"That sounds amazing! I can't wait for that to be me," Estela said, sounding like her usual cheerful self. "How are things with Monty? He hasn't called me in ages. Dad likes to pretend he doesn't follow his games, but lately he's talked about nothing but his recent losses against Penn State and Wisconsin."

"Things are, um, not great right now," Winston said in a low voice. 

"Oh, no. Tell me everything."

Winston told Estela everything that had happened since early October. Ever since Monty had come home from practice acting strange. How he didn't say anything and hoped everything would be alright eventually, and how Monty had done the same. He told her about their fight, about all the little frustrations and misunderstandings that had led them to it. About how Monty was currently staying at a friend's house, and how he had slept alone for the past three nights.

"We're pretty much broken up, and he hasn't reached out." 

Estela was a great listener. She was sure this was just a rough patch that would pass. 

"You have to understand that you changed Monty from the moment he met you. It's like... he had never felt safe until you came into his life. He loves you more than anything in the world. A bond like that can't be broken that easily by one fight. I know it doesn't seem like it right now, but he will do the right thing eventually and come back to you."

Winston didn't know what to say. He swallowed, eyes cast down, extremely grateful to have Estela to talk to. 

"Ugh, I swear I could kill that coach," she said.


	3. DECEMBER

**Monty**

When December 1st arrived, Monty had been staying at Jordan's for five days. Monty had immediately regretted his decision to leave the apartment and write that note, but how to make his way back to Winston now? How to take back everything he had said? He had said some horrible things. And there was still the fact that his relationship with Winston jeopardized his place in the football team. And did Winston even want to get back together with him? In his note, he had mentioned how Winston might want him to move out, and Winston never called or texted him to deny it.

He had heard Jordan speaking with Winston on the phone a few days ago. When Monty heard how supportive Jordan was, how understanding of what he was going through with the coach and the team, it gave him hope that maybe Winston would understand, too. He almost picked up the phone right then, to call Winston and try to work things out. But everytime he tried to think about what he was going to say, he came up empty. How could he tell Winston he loved him and at the same time ask him to pretend to be roommates to the rest of the world?

Estela had texted him a couple of days ago, wanting to know more about what was happening between him and Winston. She had always had a talent of knowing when to speak, what to say, and when to keep silent, and soon she had him pouring his feelings out. She kept saying how he should be telling all of this to Winston. How they needed to communicate better.

On December 1st, Monty got another call from someone back home. He was a bit surprised when he saw who was calling, but also kind of glad.

"Hi, Coach," Monty spoke to the phone.

"Monty," Coach Kerba replied, "how have you been? I meant to call you after that spectacular performance during your season opener, but you know how it is."

"Yeah, no, I know. We haven't been doing so good lately, though. That last one against Wisconsin was brutal."

Coach Kerba laughed. "I know, I saw. But, hey, man, that's all part of it."

"Yeah," Monty smiled despite himself. 

"Listen, man. I did want to congratulate you on how you're performing on the field—you know I'm proud of you—but there's also another reason why I'm calling. I heard you and Winston were having problems, and that your head coach has something to do with it."

Monty frowned. "What? How did you—"

"And I know this is not any of my business," Coach Kerba cut him off, "but if what I heard is true, then I need to have a word with you."

"But, how do you know?" Monty asked.

"Estela came to my office this morning. She's worried about you."

"Oh."

"Listen, Monty. I don't want to come meddling into your life, but I think you know what's the right thing to do here."

"Coach... I can't get kicked off the team. It's all I have."

"All you have? Are you sure?"

"You know what I mean. What am I going to do if I have to drop out? I just... It felt good to be doing something well for once in my life, to feel like I was becoming someone. I want to keep playing, coach. Professionally, when I'm out of college. I don't want to have that opportunity taken away."

Coach Kerba sighed. "Yeah, Monty, but you'll find prejudiced people like that everywhere. And I mean everywhere, no matter where you go. Very often they'll be in positions of power, and you may be tempted to hide parts of yourself to make people like that feel comfortable, and I understand that, because life is hard, and these people can make your life even harder. But no matter what happens to you, or what they do to you, could you really live with yourself if you put their feelings above those of the person you love the most?"

Monty hadn't thought about it that way. He had been so focused on the consequences that could come from disobeying Coach Turner that he hadn't thought about how he was prioritizing the coach's wishes over Winston's feelings. There was no rule that said he couldn't be part of the team and still be himself. That was just one man's opinion. He was seeing things so clearly now. When he thought about it like that, there was no question as to what he needed to do. 

After he and Coach Kerba hung up, Monty stared at his phone screen, his thumb just above the button that would allow him to hear Winston's voice for the first time in five days. He pressed it.

"Hello?"

"Hi," Monty said. 

There was silence for a few seconds.

"I'm sorry—" they both started to say at the same time, which made them laugh. 

"I'm going to let you go first," Winston said.

"I'm sorry I was so stupid. I should have told you immediately what was happening. I just.. I didn't know how to tell you, after everything I put you through back home. But I promise to be better at communicating my thoughts and feelings to you. I want to share everything with you, if you can forgive me."

"I need to be better at that, too. I noticed something was up, and I didn't say anything. I just kept waiting for things to fix themselves. I'm sorry about that. Will you, please, come back home?"

"Yes. I thought you wanted me to move out," Monty said.

"What? I never said that. I thought you wanted to look for your own place," Winston responded.

There was silence again before they both started laughing.

"We really need to get better at this communication thing," Monty said.

"Agree."

"Are you home now?" Monty asked.

"No, I'm at the Arb."

"Wait for me there."

"Okay. Follow the trail that leads to the peony garden. I'll be sitting in one of the benches."

Nichols Arboretum, or the Arb, was a 7 minute drive from Schembechler Hall and Michigan Stadium, and about an 11 minute drive from Jordan's apartment. There were three entrances, but the Washington Heights entrance was where the peony garden could be found. The peonies bloomed in early June, and were supposed to be very beautiful. 

Monty found Winston not on a bench but walking along the trail, almost past the garden. Winston smiled at him and Monty took his hand. They talked and walked side by side, past the peony garden and straight down the path that led to the Huron River. They stopped when they glimpsed the water, calm and almost grey under a cloudy December sky.

Putting an arm around Winston's shoulder, Monty kissed his cheek and apologized one more time. There were so many things he was sorry for. He told Winston how proud he was that he was doing so well in his classes, and apologized for saying Winston's classes were easy. He also told him how much he loved his photography. Winston turned his face towards him to press his lips against Monty's, putting an end to the onslaught of apologies. Tentatively, the first snow of the winter started to fall, and they started to make their way back as the flakes fell slowly on their skin.

"Come to my practice tomorrow," Monty said.

Winston looked at him and smirked. "We'll see. Let's just go home."

**Winston**

  
Two weeks after they had made up, everything was fine. Except for the fact that Monty kept insisting on wanting Winston to come to his football practices. Winston knew that Monty wanted to make a point. He wanted to show Winston how he didn't care about what Coach Turner said, but Winston didn't want to cause unnecessary trouble for Monty. 

On a Tuesday afternoon, Winston was sitting in their living room working on a new assignment for his screenwriting class. One of his professors was out sick, and that resulted in both him and Monty being in the apartment at 1:00 PM. Monty had just woken up from his nap and was getting ready for his 1:30 PM class. 

"What is this? Are you gonna leave without giving me a kiss?" Winston asked him when Monty was halfway out the door. 

Monty turned his face to him, smirking. "Come here."

Winston stood up and went to the door to kiss him. 

"Come to my football practice today. The guys miss you."

Winston pinched one of Monty's cheeks. "Nah," he said, cheekily, and turned his back on Monty. Suddenly, he felt something cold hit him hard in the back of his neck and drop to the floor. He looked down and saw a small pile of snow. "Hey!"

But Monty was already scooping up more snow from the ground and making it into a ball. Winston was torn between running away to their room or closing the door on Monty first. His moment of hesitation earned him another hit, this time square in the chest. "Stop!" He ran at Monty and made them both fall to the ground outside, laughing. 

Monty put his arms around him, making all movement almost impossible. "Say you'll come to my practice today."

"Nope."

"Say it!"

Winston struggled to get out of Monty's hold without success. Their neighbors must have thought they were crazy, laying out on the snow like that. "Fine, I'll go."

Monty kissed the top of his head before letting him go. "Great, see you there."

"That was cheating."

"Remember to get there a few minutes early."

"Cheater."

"I love you," Monty said, looking amused, before driving away.

At 4:00 PM, Winston drove to Schembechler Hall to meet up with Monty before his practice. As soon as he got out of his car he was dragged inside the facility and into the practice field by Monty, who had been waiting for him.

Jordan Keefer greeted him like he would an old friend, and the rest of Monty's friends seemed to go out of their way to make him feel welcome. It seemed as if they were all aware of what was going on with Coach Turner, and they wanted to express their support for them as loudly as they dared by being extra nice to Winston.

When practice was about to begin, Monty pulled Winston into a hug. Then he picked up his helmet, and stared at Winston's face.

"What?" Winston said.

With his free hand, Monty pulled Winston's face in for a kiss. Both Coach Turner and Coach Owens were present. Out of the corner of his eye, Winston saw Coach Owens smile in their direction. Coach Turner looked livid.

"Now, you're just looking for trouble," Winston said against Monty's lips, smiling in spite of himself.

"Am I?" Monty pulled away with a smile of his own. He put on his helmet and went to join the rest of the team. Winston skipped his photography club meeting to watch the practice. 

**Monty**

Coach Turner worked them hard that afternoon, which made sense considering they had their last game of the season next Saturday, but instead of feeling exhausted and drained at the end of the practice, Monty felt even more energized. It was probably a combination of the endorphins released during all that exercise and the fact that Winston had stayed there to watch. 

After showering and saying goodbye to his friends, Monty headed out with Winston. 

"You wanna grab some dinner?" Winston asked him.

"Maybe later. I kinda wanna go home right now," Monty said, running his eyes through Winston's body, and making Winston blush and smile adorably.

"All right."

They went to their room as soon as they got home. Getting into bed, Monty immediately connected their lips. He kissed Winston slowly, sometimes biting softly on Winston's lower lip, and sometimes slipping his tongue inside Winston's mouth. Monty noticed how well he was reacting to this, and he started to slowly remove Winston's shirt and jeans. 

"What about your cl—ah..." Winston started to ask before Monty bent down to plant a kiss on the sensitive skin below his navel. 

"Be patient." Monty started removing his own shirt, revealing the toned muscle beneath. He could feel Winston's eyes on him as he took everything off. The way Winston was looking at him was making him painfully hard, but he wanted to take Winston slowly. He wanted to make him come first.

Monty got on top of Winston again, trapping him beneath his body, locking their lips possessively and pressing their hips together. Releasing Winston's lips, he then proceeded to leave a trail of kisses all along Winston's jaw, paying special attention to the neck. Winston's moans were sending sharp pleasure waves straight to Monty's crotch, and he hurriedly grabbed the lube from the nightstand. 

Both were already panting when Monty pushed himself inside of Winston. After so much foreplay, Winston was aroused enough that Monty could slide in fairly easily. Once inside, Monty went slowly, in and out, trying to make it last. The skin of Winston's face and neck was flushed, making him look breathtakingly beautiful. Monty felt himself getting nearer and nearer to climax. He started running his hands through Winston's chest before taking him in one hand, rubbing him off as he continued to thrust into him.

"Ah, ah–I'm so close," Winston groaned. Monty felt Winston tighten around him as he came, which made him come, too.

Monty collapsed next to Winston and they laid next to each other in comfortable silence, basking in the afterglow. 

After a while, Winston got up to make some hot chocolate and get something light for them to eat from the kitchen. They hadn't eaten anything for dinner and were now starving. Later that night they would probably need to step out for some food. Luckily, Ann Arbor offered plenty of options, even late at night, that were at a comfortable walking distance. Outside, white snowflakes fell prettily against the pale pink and orange colors left in the sky by the setting sun.

As Winston sipped the last of his hot chocolate, Monty noticed him look over their unfinished Christmas tree. They had started decorating it when Monty came back from Jordan's, but hadn't gotten around to finishing it.

"Wanna finish decorating it?" he asked Winston.

Winston smiled at him and nodded. Instead of going for the traditional red and golden colors for the tree's ornaments, they had bought blue and silver ones. Winston had felt that those colors fit their personalities better, and Monty agreed. Winston had also picked the lights; they were white and delicate, and when they were wrapped around the tree they reminded Monty of the way snow glistened when touched by the weak rays of the winter sun.

After half an hour of fooling around and putting decorations here and there, they stepped back to admire their work. The ribbons were crooked and there was a chunk at the bottom of the tree that was bare, but they had run out of ornaments.

"This tree looks like shit," Monty said.

Winston laughed and then tried to look offended. "It does not!" He cocked his head slightly, adorably, as if trying to find an angle where the tree looked at least decent.

"I blame you for this, you know. You're supposed to be the artsy one," Monty said, shaking his head in mock disapproval. 

"How is it my fault? Photography and decorating are two very different things."

"Interesting. So, you do admit the tree looks like shit?"

"Speaking of photography, we have to take a picture," Winston said, going away to get his Nikon. "This is our first Christmas together!" he yelled from inside their room. He was out in a minute, and he brought his tripod, too.

"I want to print this one and frame it," Winston said, looking at his camera when they had taken half a dozen pictures with the tree. "It looks like a Christmas card."

"We should print extras and send one to dad," Monty said, and Winston snorted.

"Or to Coach Turner," Winston replied, and they both laughed.

Monty felt his phone vibrate and he reached into his pocket to get it out. Five, ten, twenty Whatsapp notifications flooded his locked screen one after another. They were all from the football team chat. Monty opened the app and started to read from the beginning, his eyes getting wider and wider the more he read.

"Something wrong?" Winston asked him.

"Apparently, Coach Turner has been let go," Monty said slowly as he kept reading.

"Really?!"

"According to Jordan, there were complaints from some of the guys on the team that felt discriminated against by Coach Turner. The Director of Athletics said that his behavior was unacceptable. He was fired today. There's a rumor that Coach Owens will get appointed head coach now." Monty raised his eyes from his phone screen to meet Winston's. "So, it was not just me."

"Well, I'm glad he's gone," Winston said. "Coach Owens seems like a much better person."

"Yeah, he's great," Monty smiled. It all had worked out for the best. And he was glad he had the courage to defy Coach Turner even back when he still had the power to kick him off the team. But he couldn't deny that this was a huge weight that was being lifted off his chest. He didn't have to worry about hiding his relationship anymore, or about losing his scholarship because of his identity. Without that to distract him, he could put some of that energy towards doing better in his classes. He hadn't failed any this semester, but he knew he could do better.

They spent the last days leading up to Christmas just enjoying each other's company. They debated on whether or not to go back home for the Christmas break and see their families, but ultimately they decided to stay in Ann Arbor, and explore the town at their leisure, without having to worry about classes, exams, or football games. They also had vague plans to visit the surrounding cities. They didn't mind the snow, and Monty thought it was adorable the way Winston was excited to see and photograph the colorful buildings of Depot Town in Ypsilanti, and the RiverFront in Detroit.

On Christmas morning, Monty was awakened by the clicking noises of a Nikon camera. He opened his eyes and felt Winston's lips pressing softly against his neck. 

"Merry Christmas," Winston whispered in Monty's ear. 

Outside their window, the sky was clear, but the snow that had fallen during the night completely covered the ground and the bare branches of the trees, as if the world was a great white canvas just waiting to be made beautiful by those who dared venture outside.


End file.
